Animated rocking horse



Dec. 20, 1955 a. R. FLETCHER ANIMATED ROCKING HORSE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1Filed June 24, 1953 BernardRl-lefcher INVENTOR.

BY gf 'v am Dec. 20, 1955 B. R. FLETCHER 2,727,741

ANIMATED ROCKING HORSE Filed June 24, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Bernard R. Fletcher 1 N V EN TOR.

BY Fm United States Patent ANIMATED ROCKING HORSE Bernard R. Fletcher,Dallas, Terr.

Application June 24, 1953, Serial No. 363,779

1 Claim. (Cl. 27253.2)

The present invention relates to new and useful improvements in rockinghorses and more particularly to a mechanical or animated toy of thischaracter.

An important object of the invention is to provide movable legs and headfor the horse which are actuated in simulation of the natural movementsof the animal by a lever through the medium of impact thereof with theground.

Another object is to provide pivoted legs and head connected to eachother for simultaneous swinging movement and wherein the head may beactuated by reins to also actuate the legs to simulate a gallopingmotion independently of the lever actuating means.

A further object is to provide a device of this character of simple andpractical construction, which is efficient and reliable in operation,relatively inexpensive to manufacture and otherwise well adapted for thepurpose for which the same is intended.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view;

Figure 2 is a side elevation view showing the horse rocked in agalloping position;

Figure 3 is a top plan view with parts shown in section;

Figure 4 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on a line 44 of Figure3; and,

Figure 5 is a transverse sectional view taken on a line 55 of Figure 3.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, wherein for the purpose ofillustration I have disclosed a preferred embodiment of my invention,the numeral 5 designates the hollow body of a rocking horse supported onrockers 6 by uprights 7.

Front and rear crank shafts 8 and 9 are journalled in a transverseposition internally of the body with the ends of the shafts projectingoutwardly at opposite sides of the body and to the outer ends of whichfront and rear legs 10 and 11 are suitably secured for swinging in aback and forth movement. The crank portions 12 and 13 of the shafts areconnected to each other for simultaneous rocking movement by aconnecting rod or link 14.

A pair of triangular shaped brackets or plates 15 are secured at theirbase portions in spaced apart parallel relation to each other internallyof the neck 16 of the horse by screws or the like 17 and with the apexportion 18 of the brackets projecting upwardly at an inclined angle intoa recess 19 at the rear of the head 20 of the horse. A pin 21 issupported in a transverse position in the recess 19 and is journalled inthe apex portion 18 of the brackets to rockably support the head. A coilspring 22 connects the upper rear portion of the head to one 2,727,741Patented Dec. 20, 1955 2 of the brackets 15 to normally hold the head ina raised position.

A link 23 is pivoted at one end to a pin 24 in the recess 19 under thebrackets 15 and extends downwardly therefrom in an inclined position andis pivoted at its rear lower end to the front crank 12 to connect thehead to the legs for movement with each other. Reins 2d are connected tothe head whereby pulling the reins will swing the head downwardly andsince the front and rear legs are connected thereto by means of the link23, connecting rod 14 and front and rear crank shafts 8 and 9 the legswill likewise be actuated to simulate a galloping motion.

A lever 26 is formed at its upper end with a longitudinal slot 27receiving a transverse pin 28 which projects from one side of connectingrod 14, and the lever extends downwardly from the connecting rod throughan opening 29 in the lower portion of body 5 in a forwardly inclinedposition to engage the ground between the forward portion of the rockers6. The lever is slidably supported in a guide ring 30 carried by a crossbar 31 for the front uprights 7 and the lower end of the lever isprovided with a rubber tip 32.

The lever strikes the ground as the horse is rocked forwardly and movesthe connecting rod 14 rearwardly to thus actuate the crank shafts 8 and9 and swing the legs and head to simulate a galloping motionindependently of the actuation thereof by the reins 25.

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will bereadily understood and further explanation is believed to beunnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limitthe invention to the exact construction shown and described, andaccordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resortedto, falling within the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

A rocking horse including a rockably supported hollow body, including aneck, front and rear crank shafts journalled in the body, legs securedto the outer ends of the shafts for forward and rearward swingingmovement, a connecting rod connecting the shafts to each other foruniform movement, a bracket secured inside the neck and projectingupwardly therefrom, a head having a recess at its rear portion and intowhich the upper end of the bracket projects, a transverse pin supportedby the bracket on which the head is pivoted, a link connecting the headto one of the crank shafts for simultaneous movement of the head andlegs, a lever connected at one end to the connecting rod and said leverhaving its other end free and extending downwardly below the body forcontact with the ground upon a predetermined rocking movement of thehorse to actuate the head in a downward movement and to swing the legsrearwardly, and spring means inside the hollow body and connected to oneof the moving parts of the horse to return the head and legs to theiroriginal positions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,498,223 Zsarnay June 17, 1924 1,512,972 Zsarnay Oct. 28, 19242,488,893 Barrett Nov. 22, 1949 2,680,020 Dwyer June 1, 1954 FOREIGNPATENTS 249,799 France 1926

